An online lettings platform claims to have launched the first “end-to-end self-service lettings platform” which could save landlords around £3,800.
Hello Neighbour operates in London and claims that conventional letting agents in the capital charge landlords around £4,000 in fees to let one property; Hello Neighbour claims the self-service platform would do it for £200.
The company says the service includes listing on Rightmove, Zoopla “and more”; a tool to manage tenant viewings; tenant enquiry management; online offer negotiations; tenant referencing via Open Banking; “comprehensive property compliance” support and advice from its team, and what it describes as ”tailoring tenancy contracts, arranging move-in’s, collecting the first month's rent and registering security deposits.”
The company says its ability to receive and evaluate multiple offers, register deposits, and take high quality open-banking references, all in one platform, is unique.
And it says as a letting process progresses, its contracts will be “automatically populated to deliver fully compliant, tenant move-in’s.”
The company will also offer landlords a full service letting option for £1,200.
Richard Jenkins, company founder and chief executive, comments: "We have spent four years and millions of pounds developing technology that makes letting a property simple, efficient and fully compliant. It has enabled us to successfully find thousands of tenants for landlords who have trusted us to let their properties. And it has done that in a way that has delighted both.
“I set up Hello Neighbour to change lettings for good, and by enabling any landlord to use our technology, we are doing just that. This brings simple to use, intuitive and powerful online tools to an often cumbersome and challenging process.
“We know landlords will enjoy using our platform to let their own property, and to make sure that is the case, our experienced team will always be there to help. We are incredibly excited by what we believe is a huge change for landlords and a giant step in our ambition to change lettings for good.”
The firm’s website is here.
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You get what you pay for , I’ll leave it to the real professionals thanks
When you say leave it to the professionals do you mean let it to the first idiot who comes through the door and then charge the landlord a fortune for the privilege. Then continue to charge £100s for "services" that we all know only take 10 mins to complete. Then continue to charge monthly for doing sod-all and then charge the landlord to sort it all out when it goes wrong. Then continue to look for every opportunity to screw the landlord further whilst annoying the tenant because of rubbish service. Been there, seen it, done it. And too many times for it to be an outlier. Self managed landlords, with a little know how and assistance from platforms such as the one in this article, can do a far better job for far less money. I use OpenRent, which is pretty much the same as this mob, so nothing new. I think you are a being take for a mug to fall for the idea that they will do a better job., and they rely on overselling the complexity of it all to convince people like you that you need them.
Martyn. I have excellent agents, who are actually local and provide me with a sterling service and are spot on with current legislation and it's implementation, essential when you live overseas as I do and have properties in Wales under the Welsh Rent Smart licencing scheme. Don't tar all agents with the same brush, you obviously picked the wrong ones. Like George says, you get what you pay for.
I am like William, use my local agents who are part of a franchise. Used them now for twenty years without any problems. Very helpful and know exactly what I want from tenants and contractors.
The last two properties went across to them recently, so they have all my portfolio, especially helpful is the guaranteed rent while I am working abroad.
Exception does not disprove the rule. Maybe you have both just been lucky. I've been a landlord for 25+ years with 10 properties and I've used many agents over time, from local to national and without exception, none of them do a stellar job or overcharge. One of the issues, in my view, was the fee ban. Previously, fees that were changeable to the tenant were under the spotlight from tenant advocates, Gov etc, but now they have been passed on to landlords, no one is keeping an eye out for our interests , so it's open season.
Martin. I have also been a landlord since 1992. It was not luck that brought me an excellent agent, I did my research before employing my agents, I did not employ the 1st idiot through the door which from your experiences you appear to have done. The biggest no no is employing the corporate agents who employ wet behind the ears uni graduates. I once had a decent agent in Manchester sell up and transfer my account to one of these corporates, they were dismissed by me in less than 2 months. Anyone trying to go it alone in Wales with the new rental contracts we were forced onto by Rent Smart Wales is in my opinion an idiot. Luck has nothing to do with it, 34 years experience with a portfolio of properties in England and Wales does.
You misread my post re the first idiot through the door.
Nope not for me. Pref talking to a person not a AI thing. True- some good agents but sone not so.
Pick your agent well and avoid the big nationals
Just like landlords and tenants then, Trigger.
Someone should tell him that prospective tenants are falling out of the sky. It’s getting the right ones that take the skill & then managing them properly. Our local very well informed agent does all that & a lot more for nothing like the fees he is suggesting. Yet another bunch of chancers pretending they’ve reinvented the wheel!
I've only ever used an agent once and it was a very disappointing experience.
A combination of SpareRoom and OpenRent with referencing by the NRLA, OpenRent or Vouch works well.
I usually like to meet my tenants and make my own decisions.
The house next door to mine is let by a local agent and this time round it's been a very long void (about 10 weeks). Tenants finally moved in two days ago. The landlord said there had been multiple people the agent wanted to let to but he had rejected for various reasons (too young, unmarried, tight on affordability). It was probably priced about £150 a month more than anything similar, which now looks like it may have been quite an expensive mistake.
I made the mistake of using a big chain one , they had one flat for 10 years and the rent went up by only ten quid a week ! They screwed up the checkout and thankfully I took pictures myself or the inventory would’ve been a disaster too !
I now very proudly use Strutt & Parker for all my properties in super prime central London and they are truly superb , can’t fault them !
I leave it to the real professional with 40+ years in the game. I self manage.
Agents are ‘middle men’ with an incentive to earn commissions and they don’t carry the legal responsibilities the LL does. The buck stops with the LL, one reason too many agents are less than diligent.
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